Description:Chronic Homelessness presents the most challenging barriers and highest social cost of the various forms of homelessness. This guide assists communities with developing plans to address these problems and effectively end homelessness.

Content:The United States Interagency Council supports and encourages the development of local 10-year plans to end chronic homelessness. Planning to end homelessness –not to manage or maintenance –is new. Inspired by the President’s call to end this profile of homelessness and by city and county 10-year plans that have been developed across our country, these planning processes have offered new resources, new collaborations, and new energy to create solutions. By mid-2006, over 215 cities and counties had committed to such 10-year plans.

The Council’s work with federal departments and agencies promises new collaborative approaches and new funding opportunities at the national level. Our encouragement of Governors to create state interagency councils on homelessness will create new state level opportunities. Again, by 2006, 53 Governors had made such a commitment.

Most importantly, the new research and new technologies offer performance based, results oriented strategies to reduce and end homelessness. We have prioritized people on the streets and in long term stays in shelters, those experiencing “chronic homelessness.”They are the most vulnerable, visible, and costly.

This document is designed to guide your community through the steps of developing and implementing a 10-year plan to end chronic homelessness. (USICH)

Homelessness Resource Center encourages discussion about the future of homelessness services in America. We invite your participation to ensure that a broad range of providers serving those experiencing homelessness are represented.

You will encounter opinions and perspectives from varied sources. These may not reflect the views of Homelessness Resource Center, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the Institute on Homelessness and Trauma or any other partner organization.

Be Respectful: We welcome your participation, but any comments that contain vulgar or offensive language, personal attacks, are wildly off-topic or otherwise inappropriate will be removed immediately and the offending party risks losing the ability to participate.

If You See Something Inappropriate, Report It: You may report any comment as inappropriate. Reported comments are immediately removed, pending review, so please report responsibly. The Federal Government and the Institute on Homelessness and Trauma have sole discretion in determining what is and what is not appropriate.

Don’t Include Personal Contact Information: To protect yourself and the privacy of others, please do not include phone numbers, e-mail addresses, or other personally identifying information in your comments. Such material will be removed from the site.

Do Not Request Services: This site is for the exchange of ideas and information regarding service delivery to those experiencing homelessness. It is not an appropriate location to request services or make referrals.